Professor Amy Kaminsky is a professor of Global Studies and Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies, and she is also a member of the graduate faculty of Spanish and Portuguese Studies. She specializes in Latin American literature and film, and she teaches and writes about them in relation to theories of sexuality, gender, race, and nation. Her teaching style is informal, and she encourages independent, courageous thinking. If you'd like to read an article she wrote about one of the movies we'll be discussing, click on this link: Garage Olimpo
SPAN 8900, section 002 Professor Amy Kaminsky
Seminar: Gender, Ethnicity, and Representation in Argentina
We will consider a variety of film and literary texts that deal with the mutual construction of gender, ethnicity, and nation in Argentina, with primary emphasis on Jewish texts. Readings include works by Alberto Gerchunoff, Angelica Gorodischer, Alicia Kozameh, Nora Strejilevich, Marcelo Birmajer, Alicia Partnoy, Ricardo Feierstein, and Sergio Chejfec. Films include "Sisters," "The Empty Nest," and "Autumn Sun." We will also discuss visual art by Marcelo Brodsky and Mirta Kupferminc.
All the literary texts will be available in both English and Spanish; most critical and theoretical texts are in English.The grade will be determined by participation in seminar discussions, presentations of course material, and a seminar paper. Students may write the seminar paper in English or Spanish.
GloS 4910/4390 GWSS: Sexuality and Film in Latin America
We will look at the way films from Argentina, Brazil, Cuba, and Mexico negotiate a range of sexualities with reference to such social and political issues as military dictatorship, exile, and economic crisis in Argentina; Cuba after the collapse of the Soviet Union; and class issues in Brazil and Mexico. Among the films we will screen and discuss are Doña Herlinda and her Son; Waiting for the Messiah; Martin (H); Vera; Strawberry and Chocolate; Garage Olimpo; I, the Worst of All; and Y tu mama también. We will also read one novel (The Kiss of the Spiderwoman), which links film culture and homoeroticism to military rule and resistance, as well as some film history and criticism. Students will be expected to write responses to the films and readings, lead class discussion, and write a 15-20 page term paper.
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